PRODUCTION AND MICROBIAL EVALUATION OF COCONUT FLAVOURED TIGERNUT MILK

Tigernut has been for many years one of the underutilized food crops in Nigeria. It is mostly eaten raw as snack and un-identified as a very important food crop that has great potential in managing, preventing and eliminating malnutrition (macronutrient and micronutrient deficiencies) or food insecurity problems. It has been demonstrated by nutritionist that the major nutritional problems could be solved through exploitation of the nutrition and economic potentials of the local food resources. Tigernut is one of the under utilized tubers with great potentials for domestic and commercial purposes. There is no documentation of a successful product made from tigernuts in the Nigerian market. A successful product offers a benefit that is perceptible and valued by the consumer (NUTRA, 2005). There is little documentation on the nutritional quality and versatility of tigernuts in food preparation despite its availability. However, tigernut is still one of the least popular tubers in Nigeria and hence the need for this research which intends to evaluate, promote production and utilization of tiger nuts using various processing techniques.